More than 1,000 volunteers were on Detroit's east side to plant 15,000 trees on Hantz Woodlands planting day.

ANJANA SCHROEDER/CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS

Volunteer, Stephen Eichhorst from Macomb, digs deep to plant a birch sapling, among 15,000, on Hantz Woodlands planting day in Detroit's east side.

ANJANA SCHROEDER/CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS

On Hantz Woodlands planting day in Detroit's east side, volunteers planted 15,000 trees among sporadic piles of trash.

ANJANA SCHROEDER/CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS

Kayla Tyus, from Detroit, planting one of several of the saplings she planted on Hantz Woodlands planting day in Detroit's east side.

ANJANA SCHROEDER/CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS

Line of planted saplings on Hantz Woodlands planting day in Detroit's east side. 15,000 saplings were planted by more than 1,000 volunteers.

ANJANA SCHROEDER/CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS

Jake Randall, volunteer from Oakland Twp., was in charge of quality control during Hantz Woodlands planting day in Detroit's east side.

ANJANA SCHROEDER/CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS

15,000 trees were planted on Hantz Woodlands planting day in Detroit's east side.

ANJANA SCHROEDER/CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS

More than 1,000 volunteers were on Detroit's east side to plant 15,000 trees on Hantz Woodlands planting day.

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Hundreds of volunteers with shovels in gloved hands planted more than 15,000 trees across more than 140 acres of Detroit's east side this morning.

Hantz Woodlands planting day was a day that John Hantz, president and CEO of Hantz Group Inc., said it all took much longer than he had thought. But as he recalled an inspirational quote — "Change always takes longer than you ever thought but always goes further than you ever anticipated" — he said, "this excitement is going to go way further than I anticipated."

Excitement was a common theme today, from the many volunteers who patted down dirt around saplings to others, including Hantz, who grilled 2,000 hot dogs to feed everyone after their work.

The process was fairly simple. Volunteers would shovel dirt back into the pre-dug holes, then made space to insert the sapling. Dirt was then packed down around the sapling to keep it upright and supported, before pouring wood chips around the sapling to prevent any excess water.

Jake Randall, a volunteer from Oakland Township with a shovel in hand, said he was in charge of quality control. Another volunteer, Stephen Eichhorst from Macomb Township, said, "It's a really cool idea and I wanted to come and support it."

Dave Armstrong, CEO of East Lansing-based GreenStone Farm Credit Services and one of the corporate sponsors of planting day, said that as Detroit goes, he thinks, so goes the state.

"It's all about giving back to the community," Armstrong said "We've done over 4,000 community hours just last year in rural areas that we serve, and this is part of our territory."

Back in February, Hantz told Crain's that he hoped the legacy of the woodlands project might be to spark other types of economic development and investment in Detroit neighborhoods.

"I hope it gets as many people of any economic class helping in whatever way they can," he said. "I think this can be another avenue to show people how they can help be part of the process" of revitalizing Detroit's neighborhoods.

Initially proposed as a commercial farming operation, Hantz scaled back his plans of planting apple orchards and vegetable patches at Hantz Farms after residents voiced concerns about pesticides and vermin.